John M. Sandy, J.D.

Judge Sandy, Spirit Lake, was appointed to the Iowa Court of Appeals in June 2024. The court of appeals is Iowa’s statewide intermediate appellate court, consisting of nine active judges. He serves on the Iowa Judicial Branch Fairness in Jury Selection Task Force to investigate potential amendments to Iowa Court Rules regarding peremptory strikes, aiming to improve fairness and compliance with constitutional equal protection. In addition, Judge Sandy serves as a faculty member at the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI) located in Hoover, Alabama. He is a Council of State Governments Henry Toll Fellow. Before his appointment to the appellate bench, Judge Sandy served as a district court judge being appointed in March of 2021. Before his appointment, Judge Sandy was a shareholder and managing partner at Sandy Law Firm, P.C. where he maintained a busy trial practice. He also previously worked as a first-assistant public defender for the State of Minnesota. Judge Sandy earned his law degree from the University of St. Thomas in 2010 where he served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Law & Public Policy and was awarded the law school’s scholarly engagement and societal reform award.  Judge Sandy earned his undergraduate degrees in Philosophy and Catholic Studies from the same institution graduating cum laude in 2007.